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Doug Jones (actor)
Doug Jones}} | birth_place = Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. | nationality = American | occupation = | years_active = 1985–present | spouse = | residence = Santa Clarita, California, U.S. | website = | height = 6 ft 4 in (192 cm) }} Doug Jones (born May 24, 1960) is an American actor, contortionist, and mime. He is best known for portraying non-human creatures, usually via heavy make-up and/or visual effects. He most notably collaborated with acclaimed filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, appearing in the films Mimic (1997), Hellboy (2004), Pan's Labyrinth (2006), Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008), Crimson Peak (2015), and The Shape of Water (2017).Bell, David Christopher (November 14, 2013). "7 Iconic Costume Actors You Didn’t Notice In Non-Costumed Roles" . Film School Rejects. Jones' other roles include Hocus Pocus (1993), Tank Girl (1995), The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (2005), Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007), Absentia (2011), Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016), and The Bye Bye Man (2017). He has also appeared in the science fiction series Falling Skies (2013–15) and del Toro's horror series The Strain (2014–16). Since 2017, he has portrayed Commander Saru in the science fiction series Star Trek: Discovery. Early life Jones was born in Indianapolis, the youngest of four brothers, and attended Bishop Chatard High School. He graduated from Ball State University, where he parlayed his background as a mime into portraying the school mascot "Charlie Cardinal"."Charlie Cardinal Interview" . The Doug Jones Experience. Reprinted from Ball State University's Alumnus Magazine. August 2004 Career Jones started his career in the television and movie industry as a television advertisement character of the 1980s, Mac Tonight. He worked as a contortionist, saying, "You'd be surprised how many times that comes into play in commercials. They'll want somebody to hold a box of Tide funny or something. I once squished into a box for a commercial for relaxed fit jeans".Johnson-Ott, Ed. "Hellboy's fish-guy gets filleted." Nuvo.net. April 14, 2004. Although known mostly for his work under prosthetic makeup, such as the zombie Billy Butcherson in the Walt Disney Pictures Halloween film Hocus Pocus, or the lead spy Morlock in the 2002 remake of the 1960 film The Time Machine, he has also performed without prosthetics in such films as Adaptation, Mystery Men, and Batman Returns, and indie projects such as Stefan Haves' Stalled, AntiKaiser Productions' Three Lives, Phil Donlon's A Series of Small Things, and as Cesare in David Fisher's 2005 remake of the 1920 silent classic The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. He played Abe Sapien in Hellboy, although the voice was performed by an uncredited David Hyde Pierce. Explaining the challenge of working so often in rubber suits and prosthetics, he notes, "I have to make that a part of my being and my physicality and again, acting is a full body experience and that's a part of it when you're doing a costumed character."Topel, Fred. "Fantastic Four 2: Doug Jones: Doug Jones talks sequels, Fantastic Four and Hellboy", CraveOnline.com, June 15, 2007. In 2005, he worked again with Mexican director Guillermo del Toro, starring as the Faun in del Toro's multiple-Academy Award-winning Spanish-language fantasy/horror project Pan's Labyrinth. He also has a secondary role in the film as the Pale Man, a gruesome creature with a penchant for eating children. Working once more under heavy prosthetics in both roles, he was also required to learn large amounts of dialogue in Spanish,"Doug Jones En Espanol" , canmag.com; accessed 8 March 2018. although ultimately his voice was redubbed anyway, by Pablo Adan. The same year also brought success for The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, the film receiving three awards at the Screamfest Horror Festival in Los Angeles, including the Audience Choice Award. In 2006, Jones appeared in the feature films The Benchwarmers and Lady in the Water, and reprised his role as Abe Sapien by voicing the character in the new Hellboy Animated television project, recording two 75-minute animated films. In February 2007, Jones' likeness was used for Nvidia's "Human Head" tech demo. In June 2007, he appeared in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer as the Silver Surfer (though Laurence Fishburne provided the character's voice). He reprised his role as Abe Sapien in Hellboy II: The Golden Army, once more under the direction of del Toro, for which he provided both the voice and body performance. He played two other roles in the film: the Angel of Death and the Chamberlain, both under heavy prosthetics. In 2009, del Toro announced on BBC Radio that Jones would be playing the monster in his upcoming version of Frankenstein. Jones starred as himself in Sockbaby 4, the fourth installment of the Internet martial arts comedy series Sockbaby. Jones appeared in the French-language film Gainsbourg (Vie héroïque), written and directed by French comic book author Joann Sfar and produced by Universal Europe. Jones played La Gueule ("The Mug"), the grotesque fantasy muse and malicious doppelganger who teases, guides, and accompanies Serge Gainsbourg throughout his life. He was fitted with prosthetics designed and created by the Academy Award-winning Spanish FX shop DDT Efectos Especiales, with whom he had already worked on Pan's Labyrinth; the FX technicians requested specifically that Jones be given the role of the Mug creature, due to his ability to perform with heavy prosthetics and elaborate special effects. As in Pan's Labyrinth, Jones performed his lines phonetically, this time speaking in French; his voice was redubbed by Éric Elmosnino, who also played Gainsbourg. Director Joann Sfar liked Jones' speech patterns so much that he asked Elmosnino to mimic it when he performed the creature's lines. The film was released in France on January 20, 2010. [http://www.thedougjonesexperience.com/gainsbourg.htm Information on Gainsbourg: Vie Heroique] , thedougjonesexperience.com; accessed 22 March 2018.Doug Jones incarne la Gueule de 'Gainsbourg' , cinemotions.com; accessed March 22, 2018. In January 2010, Jones signed a book deal with Medallion Press to model a nonfiction comedic coffee table book called Mime Very Own Book, co-written by Adam Mock and Scott Allen Perry, and photographed by Eric Curtis. The book was due for publication in December 2011.[http://www.medallionpress.com/blurbs/mime.html Mime Very Own Book] at Medallion Press Jones plays Dr. Henry Vataber in the web series Universal Dead.[http://www.universaldead.com/cast.html Cast page at Universal Dead website] In late June 2010, it was announced that Universal Dead would be made into a feature film."Universal Dead full length feature?" IndieIntertube; June 28, 2010 He appeared in the independent film The Candy Shop, a "modern fairy tale" shedding light upon child sex trafficking, created by the American film studio Whitestone Pictures."The Candy Shop Film Announcement" He also appeared as the Operator, a fictional entity based on the Internet myth known as the Slender Man, in Always Watching: A Marble Hornets Story a 2014 film adaptation of the popular Marble Hornets YouTube series. Jones was cast as Commander Saru in Star Trek: Discovery, which premiered September 24, 2017. That same year, Jones reunited with Guillermo del Toro in 2017, this time in a romantic lead role, playing the Amphibian Man in The Shape of Water. Personal life He describes himself as a "dyed-in-the-wool Christian from the Midwest", to the point that he was initially apprehensive about his role in Hellboy, due to the titular character's demonic nature. In 1984 Jones married his college sweetheart, Laurie. In 1985 they relocated to Los Angeles, so that Jones could pursue his acting career full time. Marotta, Jenna (2017). "‘The Shape of Water’ Star Doug Jones". IndieWire. November 24, 2017. Retrieved August 13, 2019. Filmography Film Television Web series Video games Music videos References External links * * * 2013 interview at SuperheroSpeak.com Category:1960 births Category:Contortionists Category:American Christians Category:American male film actors Category:American male television actors Category:American male voice actors Category:Ball State University alumni Category:Living people Category:Male actors from Indianapolis